


What You Deserve

by ClolyMoly



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Ren is traumatized and just wants love, Sleepovers, and the phantom thieves give him that, post-interrogation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-22
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:49:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25453417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClolyMoly/pseuds/ClolyMoly
Summary: A fic where I do what the game was too scared to do and the phantom thieves let their leader know it's okay to be vulnerable and let others protect you. A.K.A. Ren is traumatized and his friends decide to have a slumber party
Comments: 3
Kudos: 141





	What You Deserve

The lights in cafe LeBlanc were hazy, at best, through the bloodshot eyes of Ren Amamiya, who was sitting in a booth as all of the current guests were abuzz with chatter. He knew why; this was an exciting time after all, and everyone who helped with the operation deserved a pat on the back.

But right now Ren’s bones ached in protest with every breath he took. He remembered next to nothing about the interrogation room, thanks to being pumped full of drugs, but what he did remember certainly wasn’t fun. Ribs being cracked under the weight of officers, choking on ice cold water, and many other things his brain didn’t feel like reliving at the moment.

Ren vaguely registered the words around him, and thought he heard Yusuke praise his tenacity for being able to survive such an ordeal. The cocky part of Ren’s brain rejoiced, but then next he knew Sojiro was leaning over the table Ren was sat at. It was then he realized he hadn’t even taken a single sip of the coffee from the mug held tightly between his shaking hands.

“Kid, I think you need to rest a bit…” The older man said, voice laced with concern. “You’ve been through a lot of crap the past twenty-four hours, if you try and keep going as you are now, you may break yourself.”

Before Ren could find his voice, Ryuji spoke up from the seat next to him “Don’t worry boss! We’ll make sure Renren here is well taken care of!” there were murmurs of agreement from the rest of the group.

Suddenly Ren was being very gently pulled from his seat by Ryuji, and after he was stood Futaba rushed to his other side to take his hand. The group all but formed a protective circle around him as he was brought upstairs, and everything about the situation felt very surreal.

After reaching his attic room, Ren sat on the bed, and exhaustion set into his shoulders, and he felt his whole body sag heavily.

“Do you just want to sleep?” Haru asked, her hands clenched together tightly

Ann nodded, chewing her bottom lip “Yeah, we can leave if you just wanna be left alone, ya’know?” she added, her voice cracking a little. From the atmosphere in the room, Ren could tell no one really felt like leaving.

Ren suddenly remembered the underground interrogation room. Most of the time just thinking to himself that he wished his friends were there as well. He shook his head and he felt his hand start to shake as anxiety settled in his chest. “No… Please I… Don’t want to be alone…” he murmured quietly, lowering his head slightly, his messy bangs falling in his eyes and obscuring his vision.

Silence. The tension is the room was so thick it could be sliced with a knife.

“Okay, let’s have a sleepover!” Ryuji declared, and just like that the room burst with lively energy again.

“Normally I would say no, since tomorrow is a school day...” Makoto started, but her face broke out into a thoughtful smile “But missing one day of school won’t kill us.”

Ann clapped her hands together “Oh! We can get lots of snacks!” she cheered happily, of course snacks would be the first thing on her brain.

“If it is food involved I must insist I tag along.” Yusuke said coolly, crossing his arms, and a smile on his face as he enjoyed the buzz of excitement “If left to Ann she would only get desserts, after all. One must balance their meals properly.”

Ann made a face “Like you’re one to talk! You eat nothing but Jagariko!”

Haru giggled “I have a bunch of extra blankets, I can run by my place quickly and grab them so we can all sleep on the floor together” she added, already grabbing her bag.

“Oh! Oh!” Futaba jumped up from her place on the couch and waved her arms in the air excitedly “I have the entire collection of Neo-Featherman on blu-ray! Let me run home and grab my player and discs, we can have a Featherman marathon! A Feather-thon!” she didn’t wait for a response before running down the attic steps as fast as her tiny legs would carry her.

Makoto made for the stairs as well “Then I will go to the clinic quickly and get some bandages to treat Ren’s injuries better.” 

Ryuji dropped himself on the bed next to Ren and flexed an arm “I’ll stay here and beat up anyone who tries to hurt my buddy again!” Ren choked a bit on the laughter that bubbled up from him.  
Morgana huffed lightly and jumped up into Ren’s lap, curling into a soft warm ball on his thighs “Well I heard that petting animals helps with anxiety. So I guess just this once I can let you treat me like a cat…” he grumbled about it but Ren knew he really did just want him to feel better, and he scratched between the cat’s ears, the corners of his lips twitching up slightly.

“... Thank you…”

_____

The only noise in the attic was the soft buzz of the old television, as season 3 of Neo-Featherman played. The volume lowered for those of the group who had already fallen asleep. The only ones awake were the resident night-owls of the gang; Ren, Futaba, and Yusuke.

The thieves were all on the floor, laying on top of several thick quilts and pillows, with several more quilts over them all. Ren was using Ryuji’s stomach as a pillow, but had stopped registering the words from the show or Futaba and Yusuke’s quiet argument over who the best Featherman Ranger was.

He didn’t know if it was because of the amassed body heat of his friends, the cat purring contentedly on his chest, or the 7 quilts, but Ren’s body was feeling warm for the first time that day. He hated talking about his own issues, and always prioritized assisting others.

Ren always told himself that even if he did expose his problems, in the end no one would really care anyway. He had been raised where the things he wanted didn’t matter. His parents always “knew what he needed and wanted”, according to them.

They picked out his clothes, they enrolled him in different after-school activities, they told him what he could and couldn’t eat. And more than that whenever he told them he was unhappy, they always said “What does happiness matter if you can be successful?”

And now, in the middle of this room, surrounded by people who spent the whole evening only concerned about his safety and happiness… Ren wanted nothing more than to let go, and to cry.

He wanted to tell him how scared he had been, how much he had hurt. Hell, he wanted to tell them how his heart broke when he learned of Akechi’s plan. The one person he felt truly understood him, wanted him dead.

“Ren, what’s the matter?”

Ren hadn’t even noticed that Yusuke and Futaba ceased their argument and Yusuke was leaning back on his palms, eyeing Ren, his brows furrowed in concern.

“...What…?” Ren muttered softly, wondering why Futaba and Yusuke were staring at him like he grew a third eye.

“You’re crying…” Futaba said softly, looking ready to cry herself. She had always been more empathetic than she gave herself credit for.

But sure enough, as Ren lightly touched his cheek, he felt the dampness. He licked his dried and cracked lips, and tasted the salt on them. “Oh… I didn’t realize…”

Futaba and Yusuke shared a look with each other before they both laid at Ren’s sides, and hugged him. Which was a shock for Ren, considering it was Fuataba and Yusuke of all people-okay yeah, Yusuke was always more touchy, but Futaba was a shock.

“Guys…?” He asked, he could hear his voice crack.

“Thank you, Ren, for saving all of us. But please, let us take care of you more often. No one can shoulder all this on their own forever” Yusuke stated, matter-of-factly.

Futaba nodded “Yeah, this time we’ll hold the briefcase!” she said “So like, sleep or something, because you need it and deserve it…”

It was near instantaneous, but Ren felt drowsiness wash over him like a warm wave at the beach. He could actually, confidently say, he was happy here. 

The sound of the TV show faded into obscurity, and Ren finally let sleep take him.


End file.
